IXG vs VFH: Grades, Fees and Holdings Compared

iShares Global Financials ETF

IXGBNYSE Arca

Vanguard Financials ETF

VFHBNYSE Arca

Overlap

51.5%by weight

Expense ratio

VFH −0.29pt a year

IXG0.38%VFH0.09%

Avg volume · 30D

VFH 10.7×the volume

IXG54KVFH579K

10Y return · a year

VFH +0.6pt

IXG+12.3%VFH+12.9%

IXG vs VFH Performance

Oct 29, 2021 – Oct 30, 2026

+79.2%IXG+52.3%VFH

Expense ratio: IXG 0.38%; VFH 0.09%, better
Fund size: IXG $698M; VFH $13.9B
1Y total return: IXG +15.6%, better; VFH +9.6%
Yield (12M): IXG 2.19%, better; VFH 1.71%
Holdings: IXG 244; VFH 426
Avg volume (30D): IXG 54K sh; VFH 579K sh, better
NAV per share: IXG $129.29; VFH $137.29
52W range

ETF.net Grade

Pillar letters and Scores for IXG, VFH, with each pillar’s weight
Pillar	IXG	VFH
Cost30% weight	C53	A88Higher
Mission25% weight	A85	Not scored
Risk15% weight	A86Higher	C53
Tradability15% weight	D35	B56Higher
Holdings10% weight	A79Higher	C53
Durability5% weight	B59	A84Higher

Rank among Financials (Broad) funds

How we build Categories ›

Same Category. IXG and VFH are both graded against the same 18 Financials (Broad) funds, so their Grades compare head to head.

Financials (Broad)⁠

Category · 18 funds

See all 18 ›

VFH ranks 4th and IXG 5th of 18 funds in the Financials (Broad) Category.

Rank 1AXLFState Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETFScore 82
Rank 2AFNCLFidelity MSCI Financials Index ETFScore 76
Rank 3AKIEState Street SPDR S&P Insurance ETFScore 72
Rank 4BVFHVanguard Financials ETFScore 69
Rank 5BIXGiShares Global Financials ETFScore 66
Rank 5BIYFiShares U.S. Financials ETFScore 66

Our read on each fund

ETF.net Research

IXGBiShares Global Financials ETF

VFHBVanguard Financials ETF

In short

IXG Most financials ETFs stop at the US border. This one, running since 2001, owns the sector worldwide: roughly 220 banks, insurers and exchanges, priced below the typical financials fund.

VFH Financials without the size filter. VFH holds roughly 400 US financial stocks, from the megabanks down to small regional lenders and insurers, for 0.09% a year.

Stated mandate

IXG The fund seeks to track an index of global equities in the financials sector, providing diversified exposure to financial companies worldwide.

VFH VFH seeks to track the MSCI US Investable Market Index (IMI)/Financials 25/50, providing passively managed, multicapitalization exposure to U.S. financial-sector equities.

Why people hold it

IXG Global by design. It tracks the S&P Global 1200 Financials Capped Index, so overseas banks and insurers sit next to the American giants instead of being left out.ishares.com
0.38% a year, below the 0.44% median for financials funds. Rare to get worldwide reach for less than the category norm.
Roughly 220 holdings under a capped index, which limits how far any one megabank can dominate the basket.
Live since 2001 and among the stronger index-tracking records in its peer group, with more than two decades of history behind the method.

VFH Owns the whole sector, not just the giants: roughly 400 US financial names through MSCI's US IMI Financials 25/50 index, megabanks through small regional lenders and insurers.vanguard.com
Costs 0.09% a year, a fraction of what the typical broad financials fund charges.vanguard.com
Running since 2004, now a multi-billion-dollar fund that trades actively, and it has stayed close to its index. One of the strongest implementations in the financials group.
Pays out quarterly, passively managed, no manager stock-picking inside the sector.

Worth knowing

IXG US-only rivals such as XLF, FNCL and VFH charge closer to 0.08%. The passport costs roughly four times more than staying home.
Trades thinner than the big US-focused financials funds, so spreads can widen and limit orders do real work.
Income lands once or twice a year, not quarterly. Something to know if you like a steadier payout rhythm.

VFH One sector, one storyline: banks, insurers and brokers tend to move together with interest rates and the credit cycle.
The multicap reach cuts both ways. Small regional banks and niche insurers ride along with the megacaps, and they can swing harder.
Cost isn't the edge here: XLF and FNCL sit at essentially the same fee. Breadth of coverage is the real differentiator.

Full IXG profile⁠

Full VFH profile⁠

IXG vs VFH Holdings

How IXG and VFH differ

Overlap by weight

51.5%

Shared holdings make up 86.0% of VFH and 51.5% of IXG.

Level by level

Sector9 Sectors37.4%
Holdings76 in both51.5%
Countryby domicile54.4%
Asset classEquity100%

Sector

Sector weights in IXG and VFH, widest gap first
Sector	More in IXGMore in VFH	IXG	VFH
Financials	VFH +59.9 points	37.4%	97.3%
Banks	IXG +45.0 points	45.0%	0.0%
Insurance	IXG +17.6 points	17.6%	0.0%
Technology	VFH +1.9 points	0.0%	1.9%
Real Estate	VFH +0.6 points	0.0%	0.6%
Health Care	VFH +0.1 points	0.0%	0.1%
Industrials	VFH +0.1 points	0.0%	0.1%
Consumer Discretionary	Same weight	0.0%	0.0%
Communication	Same weight	0.0%	0.0%

Country, concentration and asset class

Country by domicile

Country weights in IXG and VFH, widest gap first
Country	More in IXGMore in VFH	IXG	VFH
United States	VFH +45.6 points	54.4%	100.0%
Canada	IXG +8.4 points	8.4%	0.0%
Japan	IXG +6.8 points	6.8%	0.0%
United Kingdom	IXG +5.4 points	5.4%	0.0%
Australia	IXG +4.1 points	4.1%	0.0%
Germany	IXG +3.0 points	3.0%	0.0%
Switzerland	IXG +2.7 points	2.7%	0.0%
Italy	IXG +2.7 points	2.7%	0.0%
Other countries (7)	IXG +12.5 points	12.5%	0.0%

Outside the US: IXG 92% developed, 8% emerging.

Concentration

Weight in the 10 largest Holdings

IXG31.1%
VFH48.5%

Securities held

IXG223
VFH424

Asset class

IXG: Equity
VFH: Equity

Holdings

Only in IXG147
In both76
Only in VFH348

Only in IXG

147 securities, 48.0% of IXG by weight

Hsbc Holdings PLC1.91%
Royal Bank of Canada1.83%
Mitsubishi Ufj Financial Group1.68%
Toronto Dominion1.33%
Commonwealth Bank of Australia1.27%
Allianz1.20%
Banco Santander1.10%
Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group1.01%
Ubs Group AG0.94%
Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria0.85%
China Construction Bank Corp H0.83%
Unicredit0.80%
Mizuho Financial Group0.78%
Bank of Montreal0.78%
Dbs Group Holdings Ltd0.76%
Zurich Insurance Group AG0.74%
Bank of Nova Scotia0.74%
Tokio Marine Holdings0.69%
Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce0.69%
Intesa Sanpaolo0.65%
Aia Group0.65%
Bnp Paribas SA0.62%
National Australia Bank0.59%
Ing Groep0.59%
Westpac Banking Corporation0.57%
Oversea-Chinese Banking0.57%
Anz Group Holdings Ltd0.56%
Brookfield Class A0.55%
Muenchener Rueckversicherungs-Gese0.52%
Industrial and Commercial Bank of0.52%
Investor Class B0.52%
Axa SA0.49%
Barclays PLC0.49%
Manulife Financial0.48%
Lloyds Banking Group PLC0.47%
Deutsche Boerse AG0.43%
Bank of China Ltd H0.42%
Deutsche Bank AG0.42%
Natwest Group PLC0.40%
Macquarie Group Ltd Def0.39%
Nordea Bank0.39%
National Bank of Canada0.38%
Swiss Re AG0.36%
London Stock Exchange Group PLC0.36%
Assicurazioni Generali0.32%
Standard Chartered PLC0.31%
Caixabank SA0.31%
United Overseas Bank0.30%
Ctbc Financial Holding0.30%
Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing0.30%

Only in VFH

348 securities, 13.5% of VFH by weight

LPL Financial Holdings Inc0.29%
Markel Group Inc0.26%
SoFi Technologies Inc0.24%
Affirm Holdings Inc0.23%
East West Bancorp Inc0.20%
Reinsurance Group of America Inc0.19%
First Citizens BancShares Inc/NC0.18%
Toast Inc0.17%
Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc0.17%
Equitable Holdings Inc0.17%
Annaly Capital Management Inc0.16%
RenaissanceRe Holdings Ltd0.16%
Unum Group0.15%
SLBBH11420.14%
Tradeweb Markets Inc0.14%
First Horizon Corp0.13%
Stifel Financial Corp0.12%
Rocket Cos Inc0.12%
AGNC Investment Corp0.12%
Ally Financial Inc0.12%
Carlyle Group Inc/The0.12%
SEI Investments Co0.12%
Popular Inc0.12%
Southstate Bank Corp0.12%
Fidelity National Financial Inc0.11%
Wintrust Financial Corp0.11%
Evercore Inc0.11%
UMB Financial Corp0.11%
Zions Bancorp NA0.11%
Affiliated Managers Group Inc0.11%
Cullen/Frost Bankers Inc0.11%
American Financial Group Inc/OH0.11%
Voya Financial Inc0.10%
Primerica Inc0.10%
Corebridge Financial Inc0.10%
Old Republic International Corp0.10%
FirstCash Holdings Inc0.10%
Old National Bancorp/IN0.10%
Columbia Banking System Inc0.10%
Jackson Financial Inc0.10%
Western Alliance Bancorp0.09%
Prosperity Bancshares Inc0.09%
Hanover Insurance Group Inc/The0.09%
Oscar Health Inc0.09%
Commerce Bancshares Inc/MO0.09%
Kinsale Capital Group Inc0.08%
Axis Capital Holdings Ltd0.08%
Lincoln National Corp0.08%
StoneX Group Inc0.08%
Houlihan Lokey Inc0.08%

Weight gaps

All 76 Holdings in both funds, largest gap first.

Holding weights in IXG and VFH, widest gap first
Holding	More in IXGMore in VFH	IXG	VFH
JPMorgan Chase & CoJPM	VFH +4.66 points	5.80%	10.46%
Visa Class AV	VFH +2.54 points	4.56%	7.10%
Bank of AmericaBAC	VFH +2.09 points	2.11%	4.20%
Mastercard Class AMA	VFH +1.98 points	3.34%	5.32%
Berkshire Hathaway Inc Class BBRK.B	VFH +1.82 points	6.54%	8.36%
CitigroupC	VFH +1.28 points	1.33%	2.61%
Goldman Sachs GroupGS	VFH +1.27 points	1.69%	2.96%
Wells FargoWFC	VFH +1.25 points	1.63%	2.88%
Morgan StanleyMS	VFH +1.21 points	1.43%	2.64%
Charles SchwabSCHW	VFH +0.99 points	0.93%	1.92%
American ExpressAXP	VFH +0.83 points	1.08%	1.91%
BlackRockBLK	VFH +0.78 points	1.07%	1.85%
Robinhood Markets Class AHOOD	VFH +0.58 points	0.43%	1.01%
ProgressivePGR	VFH +0.57 points	0.87%	1.44%
Capital One Financial CorpCOF	VFH +0.53 points	0.81%	1.34%
ChubbCB	VFH +0.52 points	0.83%	1.35%
Bank of New York Mellon CorpBNY	VFH +0.52 points	0.65%	1.17%
S&P GlobalSPGI	VFH +0.51 points	0.91%	1.42%
Us BancorpUSB	VFH +0.47 points	0.60%	1.07%
Pnc Financial Services GroupPNC	VFH +0.47 points	0.59%	1.06%
Cme Group Class ACME	VFH +0.42 points	0.71%	1.13%
BlackstoneBX	VFH +0.41 points	0.58%	0.99%
Intercontinental Exchange IncICE	VFH +0.40 points	0.62%	1.02%
MarshMRSH	VFH +0.36 points	0.62%	0.98%
Travelers CompaniesTRV	VFH +0.34 points	0.54%	0.88%
Moodys CorpMCO	VFH +0.32 points	0.48%	0.80%
Truist FinancialTFC	VFH +0.28 points	0.39%	0.67%
State StreetSTT	VFH +0.27 points	0.30%	0.57%
MetlifeMET	VFH +0.26 points	0.35%	0.61%
Coinbase Global Class ACOIN	VFH +0.26 points	0.21%	0.47%
Kkr and Co IncKKR	VFH +0.26 points	0.42%	0.68%
AflacAFL	VFH +0.25 points	0.36%	0.61%
Allstate CorpALL	VFH +0.25 points	0.43%	0.68%
Ameriprise Finance IncAMP	VFH +0.25 points	0.28%	0.53%
Arthur J GallagherAJG	VFH +0.24 points	0.46%	0.70%
Fifth Third BancorpFITB	VFH +0.23 points	0.32%	0.55%
Aon PLC Class AAON	VFH +0.23 points	0.44%	0.67%
Apollo Global ManagementAPO	VFH +0.23 points	0.35%	0.58%
Prudential Financial IncPRU	VFH +0.21 points	0.26%	0.47%
Interactive Brokers Group Inc ClasIBKR	VFH +0.20 points	0.23%	0.43%
American International GroupAIG	VFH +0.19 points	0.28%	0.47%
Nasdaq IncNDAQ	VFH +0.19 points	0.31%	0.50%
Block Class AXYZ	VFH +0.19 points	0.26%	0.45%
M&T BankMTB	VFH +0.17 points	0.21%	0.38%
Hartford Insurance GroupHIG	VFH +0.17 points	0.23%	0.40%
Huntington Bancshares IncHBAN	VFH +0.16 points	0.21%	0.37%
MsciMSCI	VFH +0.16 points	0.30%	0.46%
Northern TrustNTRS	VFH +0.15 points	0.20%	0.35%
Citizens Financial Group IncCFG	VFH +0.15 points	0.17%	0.32%
Principal Financial Group IncPFG	VFH +0.15 points	0.14%	0.29%
Arch Capital GroupACGL	VFH +0.14 points	0.23%	0.37%
Raymond JamesRJF	VFH +0.13 points	0.18%	0.31%
Willis Towers WatsonWTW	VFH +0.13 points	0.19%	0.32%
Synchrony FinancialSYF	VFH +0.12 points	0.16%	0.28%
T Rowe Price GroupTROW	VFH +0.12 points	0.15%	0.27%
CorpayCPAY	VFH +0.12 points	0.17%	0.29%
Cboe Global MarketsCBOE	VFH +0.11 points	0.23%	0.34%
Cincinnati FinancialCINF	VFH +0.11 points	0.18%	0.29%
Regions FinancialRF	VFH +0.11 points	0.16%	0.27%
Fiserv IncFISV	VFH +0.12 points	0.17%	0.29%
Ares Management Class AARES	VFH +0.10 points	0.19%	0.29%
KeycorpKEY	VFH +0.09 points	0.13%	0.22%
LoewsL	VFH +0.09 points	0.12%	0.21%
Global Payments IncGPN	VFH +0.09 points	0.14%	0.23%
Brown & Brown IncBRO	VFH +0.08 points	0.13%	0.21%
Everest GroupEG	VFH +0.07 points	0.10%	0.17%
Fidelity National Information ServFIS	VFH +0.07 points	0.13%	0.20%
Globe LifeGL	VFH +0.07 points	0.08%	0.15%
Wr BerkleyWRB	VFH +0.06 points	0.11%	0.17%
Assurant IncAIZ	VFH +0.07 points	0.09%	0.16%
Jack Henry and Associates IncJKHY	VFH +0.05 points	0.07%	0.12%
Franklin TempletonBEN	VFH +0.05 points	0.06%	0.11%
Invesco LtdIVZ	VFH +0.05 points	0.08%	0.13%
Factset Research SystemsFDS	VFH +0.03 points	0.08%	0.11%
Erie Indemnity Class AERIE	VFH +0.03 points	0.04%	0.07%
PayPal HoldingsPYPL	VFH +0.02 points	0.31%	0.33%

All 223 IXG holdings⁠All 404 VFH holdings⁠

How we measure overlap

Each holding counts at its smaller weight in the two funds, summed over the full Holdings. Sector, country and asset class use the same rule on each fund’s split. Cash, FX and derivative lines stay out of the counts. Two bond funds get no overlap figure.

IXG vs VFH Cost

Overpaying IXG vs VFH

$5,808

On $10,000 over 30 years. 7% growth a year before fees, expense ratio only.

IXG 0.38%
$7,706
VFH 0.09%
$1,898

Amount$10,000

Years30 years

Cost over time

IXG 0.38%
VFH 0.09%
Overpaying

Year by year

Year	IXG	VFH	Overpaying
10	$688	$165	$523
20	$2,658	$646	$2,012
30	$7,706	$1,898	$5,808

Expense ratio

0.38%IXG
0.09%VFH, cheaper

VFH0.09%IXG0.38%

0.08%5.39%

Middle half of Financials (Broad) funds
Median 0.37%

VFH 3rd cheapest of 18 funds

IXG 11th cheapest of 18 funds

IXG vs VFH Dividends

Last 12 months to Oct 30, 2026

Yield (12M): IXG 2.19%, better; VFH 1.71%
Payout (12M): IXG $2.83; VFH $2.35
Last payment: IXG $1.76; VFH $0.45
Ex-dividend: IXG Jun 15, 2026; VFH Sep 23, 2026
Paid on: IXG Jun 18, 2026; VFH Sep 25, 2026
Frequency: IXG Twice a year; VFH Quarterly

Distribution history

Per share, 2017 to 2026, same scale for both

IXGTwice a year · 20 paymentsAll IXG payments⁠

VFHQuarterly · 39 paymentsAll VFH payments⁠

IXG vs VFH Risk

Fall from peak · 5 years

Risk facts

VolatilityStd dev, 3 years: IXG 12.8%, betterVFH 15.9%
Return per unit of riskSharpe ratio, 3 years: IXG 1.58, betterVFH 1.11
Worst fallMax drawdown, 5 years: IXG −27.2%VFH −25.7%, better
Market sensitivityBeta, 5 years: IXG 0.81VFH 0.82; Market = 1

IXG and VFH in the news

All news⁠

Deep Dive
Bank earnings week will miss most of what a financials fund owns
Oct 12, 2026VFH

Popular comparisons

IXGBvsXLFA
iShares Global Financials ETF · State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF
Expense ratio
0.38% · 0.08%
Category
VFHBvsXLFA
Vanguard Financials ETF · State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF
Expense ratio
0.09% · 0.08%
Category
IXGBvsFNCLA
iShares Global Financials ETF · Fidelity MSCI Financials Index ETF
Expense ratio
0.38% · 0.08%
Category
VFHBvsFNCLA
Vanguard Financials ETF · Fidelity MSCI Financials Index ETF
Expense ratio
0.09% · 0.08%
Category
IXGBvsKIEA
iShares Global Financials ETF · State Street SPDR S&P Insurance ETF
Expense ratio
0.38% · 0.35%
Category
VFHBvsKIEA
Vanguard Financials ETF · State Street SPDR S&P Insurance ETF
Expense ratio
0.09% · 0.35%
Category